Foursquare 4.0 for Windows Phone with a major redesign now available

The redesigned Foursquare app for Windows Phone is now live on the Store along with its new UI and feature focus. Designed to run on all versions of Windows Phone, including the aging 7.5, Foursquare 4.0 looks to bring a more Yelp-like experience with discovery taking priority over social.

The new redesign may not win everyone over, however after running the new app for a few minutes it does have some clever and well thought out features. Interestingly, it does have a 'check in' option, although it is a button that launches the Foursquare Swarm app, assuming you have it installed. The handoff to Swarm works well, making the two apps seamless in usability.

Foursquare 4.0 lets you pick certain categories of food and drink and then customizes searches for you based off of the input, which can be modified later on. From there, you can rate, save or share new discoveries in addition to leaving a 'tip' for others. Swiping to the right brings up Overview, Photos, and Details.

Overall, the new Foursquare app is a bit better than we had anticipated, though we will leave the final decision to you. Performance is 'okay' for a complete rewrite, although we hope it improves in later iterations. No indication yet of a similar redesign for the Windows 8.1 app, though we will keep an eye out.

Just updated it. It is ugly as hell. Looks like a 90's webpage. I used to appreciate foursquare for the great app design, now it's like... i actually tought it's a joke. Plus, it doesn't even work anymore. I can't open it, it only opened once. I hope they'll restore it, i loved the old app. I don't see myself using this failure.

Very good update, it beats the Yelp WP app in terms of speed and ease of use. Unfortunately Yelp still has more reviews and content. Hoping Foursquare can get this. I still use Swarm to check in and hoping that my recommendations will be good because of that.

I like the new design but its confusing at times. I can deal with it but increasing my radius or searching in different locations should be easier. The check in feature was easier as well in the old UI. I do appreciate the update and change but not sure if the addition of the swarm app is suppose to add to the experience. Should be one app.

I never understood the Foursquare - Swarm split. Regardless, the legacy WP foursquare app was the only reliable way to post a picture of a venue and get it through to twitter and facebook. Swarm always fails to deliver the picture to Facebook and is generally very unreliable and crashes all the time. Not to mention having to scroll a random list to find the friend you want to check in with you.

Wow. Just wow. This much needed update is very nicely done. I love the layout and is fast on my Lumia 920. Well done Foursquare. Really well done. It is actually usable now. I'm dropping it on my start screen. It is well done.

No, its true. I think the redesign is moving in the right direction. Its quite nice actually. Very well laid out and easy to navigate. That is what I need from it. The old design needed a refresh. You expected something else? Of so, what? Its Foursquare. It finds places to eat, shows current reviews, gives directions and if you want to do checkin's you can from Foresquare. What did you expect?

They're different apps. One is for checkins and meeting up with people (Swarm) the other is for finding someplace to go based on your likes and interests at the time. They work together or separately but there is actually very little overlap.

Many like I, have been using 4sq as a Yelp-like discovery app, based on where similarly like minded friends go to. It's awesome especially when visiting a foreign city as I can see where my friends has been to and whether they enjoy the venue.

From what I've seen myself, a lot of people have moved on to voice assistants. Even if the backend is still powered by Foursquare, people are relying on built-in search functions more than the Foursquare app.

So, they could still have one app for both..those who dont want to check-in, dont need to (just like facebook) and those that do, can..so i agree with @Piyush , there was no reason to split the app. It's simpler and more seamless. As it is, we still get notifications on both and you can still check-in on both ...so they could have just made one app and simplified the UI.

I've never checked-in or used it in that way, so I can't really see it as you do, but I can say, from my point of view, this update is great for what I need the app to do for me. This sentence got a bit confusing, but I hope you got what I meant :)

I think the UI is not complicated, and it brought a bunch of options that were lacking in the previous version.

I actually haven't updated the app yet, due to the reason I mainly use the old Foursquare app..more on that in a sec.

I'm sure it is a great update and your sentence makes sense and I understand what you are trying to say, especially if you don't really use the check-in functions but that's also the point we're trying to make, you were able to use the Foursquare app without having to check-in, yet those who did want to use it the way you do, in additional to it's social features such as checking-in, could do that as well, it wasn't a broken system, they could have improved it without splitting it up, while also giving them the advantage of being different from similar apps.

I used to enjoy using this app because it featured all these interesting locations yet at the same time, there was a fun element to it, which is why I personally feel they should have kept it under one app. All they had to do was just add a check-in section to the app. I've been using the Swarm app since it's release and I still have the "old" Foursquare installed but till this day, they haven't shown any good reason to split the apps, especially since both apps are still "connected"; you're on Swarm, you want to see more about a place, you click it takes you to Foursquare and vice versa, all they've been showing by still keeping the apps connected is more reason for them to be merged as one.

Ironically, the main reason I actually use Foursquare and won't update to the new one, is an underappreciated featured found when getting info about a location; 'Get Directions' which connects to 'Here Drive' I simply love that and it's unfortunate if we're losing that feature. I find it easier to just enter the name of a place on FS and click on 'Get Directions' to take me to the location, as opposed to having to go into 'Here Drive' enter the address of the location and if you don't know the address, you have to look it up. It's such a small feature that works brilliantly and that's actually what I used Foursquare for the most, the rest was just a fun element to it.

Glad you agree buddy, hopefully they give both apps more purpose for separation but more importantly, i hope the 'Get Direction' feature is in the new app or gets included again..im afraid to update and lose this feature, so if you happen to find it in the new app, please do let me know so i can use the new interface.

New or improved APIs in WP8 and 8.1 compared to WP7. Newer memory adjustements, different way the CPU is being used. More fluid, 60 fps animation possible on WP8 hardware than on WP7 hardware. The background agent works different in WP7, WP8 and WP8.1

Well, try this version. It's like Yelp, meant for discovery. It actually works very well. Put in your tastes/likes, the service finds restaurants, bars and bistros that you might like.

I'm still 'new' to my area in Massachusetts, so an app like this is great for finding a place to go to.

I think what you don't understand is the checkin stuff, which has now been removed from Foursquare and handed off to Swarm. In other words, it's completely optional now with less of a focus on the social/mayor stuff.

Last year I visited SFO and went to a good Thai restaurant. This year when I returned to SFO, I was able to see my old checkin to find out that restaurant. I can also do this with my friends. My friends in NY check in at different pubs, restaurants and whenever I visit NYC, i can use Foursquare to look it up.

Foursquare is more popular in the East coast (NY area)...could be because they're from NY.

Absolutely Daniel! Whenever I'm traveling, I always use this to find a good place to eat...without it, (ie...the 'old days') it was food roulette with food poisoning the possible outcome if you guessed poorly.